Star trek: The next generation 1.11b - Symbiosis

Episode propaganda

The Enterprise is in the Delos System when they intercept a distress call from a freighter, the Sanction. Captained by T'Jon (Merritt Butrick) the ship is about to burn up in the atmosphere of the nearby planet, Brekka. Tasha manages to beam over all of the cargo and only four of the crew, but they don't show any sadness over their lost comrades.

The two Ornarans, T'Jon and Romas (Richard Lineback), say that the shipment of Felicium is theirs, a medicine for a plague on Ornara. The two Brekkians, Sobi (Kimberly Farr) and Langor (Judson Scott), claim they can't just give it away without being paid for it.

Then Beverley makes a discovery: Felicium used to be a medicine, but it cured the plague 200 years ago - now it is merely a very addictive narcotic. But because the Brekkian economy has been based on the drug for so long, nothing can be done without breaking the Prime Directive...

Persons of interest

Patrick Stewart .... Captain Jean-Luc Picard

Jonathan Frakes .... Commander Will Riker

Michael Dorn .... Lieutenant Worf

Brent Spiner .... Lieutenant Commander Data

Gates McFadden .... Commander Doctor Beverly Crusher

Marina Sirtis .... Lieutenant Commander Counsellor Deanna Troi

LeVar Burton .... Commander Geordi La Forge

Wil Wheaton .... Wesley Crusher

Denise Crosby .... Lieutenant Natasha "Tasha" Yar

Majel Barrett .... USS Enterprise-D computer voice

Merritt Butrick .... T'Jon

Richard Lineback .... Romas

Judson Scott .... Langor

Kimberly Farr .... Sobi

Robert Lewin .... Storywriter, Screenwriter

Richard Manning .... Screenwriter

Hans Beimler .... Screenwriter

Win Phelps .... Director

Cinematic intelligence sources

Intelligence analyst

Special Agent Matti

Intelligence report

Just say no.

While Symbiosis presents the major arguments about drugs (if they are addictive they are bad) it should be kept in mind that some drugs are not only condoned by society (both contemporary Earth and the UFP) by positively encouraged, such as alcohol. The what this episode doesn't mention is that the "badness" of any particular drug is relative. There are more alcohol users than there are smack users, and correspondingly more addicts. There are also some people who do not get addicted to drugs, either because they have the wrong physiology (their body doesn't respond to the drug in an addictive fashion) or the wrong psychology (they don't need the drug as a crutch or they don't like the effect of the drug). There are also people who don't like drugs because they don't like the possiblity of people enjoying themselves (wowsers). Then there're the people who object on philosophical grounds (addiction leads to criminal behaviour to pay for the habit and/or reduced quality of life).

All of which is a long-winded way of saying that drug use is a matter of choice, for which a poor education can only lead to ill-informed decisions.